Article feed devices comprising a plurality of rollers are sometimes referred to as roller tracks. Such devices are frequently used in convenience stores, supermarkets and the like for allowing a row of articles, such as bottles, cigarette packages and may other types of packages and products to be automatically forwarded to the front edge of a shelf when a front most article has been removed from the shelf. By this means the front most article of the row is always positioned at the front edge of the shelf, where it is clearly visible and easy to grab.
The article feed devices are normally placed on top of the shelf and fixed thereto. Quite frequently the article feed devices form part of a shelf accessory system comprising different types of shelf accessories, such as shelf dividers, pusher devices, holders for paper and electronic labels and the like. Normally, such a system also comprises a front fixation device which may be fixed along a front edge of the shelf and which comprises engagement means cooperating with the various accessories for fixation of the accessories, including article feed devices, to the shelf.
The article feed devices may, in some instances, be arranged at the shelf with an inclined angle to the horizontal, such that articles placed on the rollers are feed forwardly towards the front edge of the shelf by gravity acting on the articles. In other instances the article feed devices may be arranged horizontally and arranged in cooperation with a pusher device, such as a spring biased pusher which contacts the rearmost article of a row and urges the row forwardly.